Meta beats revenue expectations but legal penalties hit profit
Meta beat investor expectations for third-quarter revenue on Wednesday but the social media giant’s profits took a hit due to an US$18 billion legal settlement with nearly all US states.
The company reported US$9.86 billion in profits from July to September, almost 50% below investor expectations, which Meta said was dragged down by a US$9.9 billion charge related to the settlement.
Meta reported its earnings just hours after another financial penalty was announced related to a case in New Mexico.
A judge ruled that Meta must pay US$25 billion to New Mexico after a jury found last month that the social media giant had deceived users in a case related to the Cambridge Analytica scandal.
The company has also been spending aggressively to build out its artificial intelligence capabilities.
In the September quarter, Meta said it spent US$35 billion on capital expenditures, below investor expectations of US$41 billion.
In July the company had increased its spending estimate for the whole year to US$145 billion, up from US$130 billion, which is nearly double what it spent in 2025.
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